A Burning Ache
by Ookamii
Summary: Takes place a couple years after "Desire". "Katara feels so lonely without Aang, and is hurt by the fact that he never proposed."


The previous night had been cruel, and the night before that, and the night before that. The unbearable Fire Nation heat was bad enough in the spring, and even in the winter. However, this was summer; the hottest time of the year. Not even the cool silky sheets that hugged Katara so delicately could relieve the burning ache inside her.

Little beads of sweat rolled down her forehead and rested on her cheeks, intermixing with the newly shed tears of her quiet sobbing. The moon was only a half that night, and mimicked her broken heart. It spread its silver rays across her face, and she felt exposed. She felt like the world could see her miserable state; they could feel her warm tears. Despite the nagging warmth that consumed her from the inside out, Katara felt as cold as ever.

Instead of throwing the sheets off of her overheated body, she pulled them closer. "Aang," she whined. It had been two months since the young avatar had left; once again journeying to diffuse the constant raids from Ozai supporters. It had been four years since the fall of the Phoenix King, and although Aang managed to solve most of the issues, some were still in need of settling. Zuko had allowed Katara to stay at the palace when Aang had insisted that it was his duty to go alone, again.

"Why?" She touched the bare spot on her neck. She had left it bare on purpose, hoping desperately that Aang would present her with a necklace to put there. He hadn't.

Katara flinched in pain when the tears welled up again. They hid in between the corners of her wet blue eyes, and then spilled over. Sobbing a little louder now, she buried her face in the uncomfortable pillow.

_I don't care if I suffocate. I don't care anymore! Anything would be better than this…_

The annoying ringing in Katara's ears prevented her from hearing the slight creak of the door opening. Her tears blinded her from seeing her beloved airbender standing at the foot of her bed. And confusion overwhelmed her enough to where she couldn't respond to his gentle spooning.

"Shhhh," he calmed her, stroking her back and burying his face in her hair. "I'm here. I'm here," he repeated over and over again. The lack of response from his girlfriend didn't make Aang nervous. He knew how much she had been hurt, and how much she had suffered from his departure. But being this close to her again, being able to touch her like this; it lifted the huge burden he had been carrying off his shoulders. He couldn't stop the tears of joy from raining down.

When it finally struck Katara who was lying in bed right beside her, she practically leaped off the comforter onto the floor. Grasping the sheets to make sure she didn't fall off, she stared at Aang coldly, and her dagger-eyes practically pierced his heart. "Katara," Aang pleaded quietly. "It's me. Please, please don't act like this."

"Act like what?" She pulled herself back onto the bed and crossed her arms impatiently. "How do you expect me to act? You left me for weeks, months, and you just expect me to welcome you back like you never hurt me?" Her eyes briefly softened at the crushed expression on his face, and for a moment, she almost expected him to argue back. Instead he hesitantly cupped her cheek, tears now evident.

"I know," he whispered. "I know I hurt you. I never wanted to. You couldn't possibly understand how much I wanted to hold you."

Katara pulled away from his caress sharply, almost as if he had slapped her.

"I wouldn't know?" Her eyes blazed with anger, causing Aang to shrink away. "I wanted you more than you ever realized! I needed you more than you could ever think! And you think I wouldn't know," she couldn't finish. She buried her face in her hands as her sobbing became uncontrollable. "You left me," she whispered brokenly into her palms. "No necklace, no nothing. You just left me."

This caught Aang's attention. "No necklace?" He reached forward to gently cup her chin, forcing her to look at him. "What are you talking about?"

She didn't answer him directly. She threw herself into his arms, gently pouring her emotions out into his shoulder, which was now soaking wet. "Y-you won't m-marry m-me," she sobbed. "I-I k-eep waiting, but y-you won't," once again, she let her pathetic explanation end midsentence. Aang stared down at her pitifully. It pained him to see her in this much despair, and especially when he was the cause of it. He dropped a kiss on her shoulder, then her neck, before finally seeking out her lips and putting a sweet kiss there as well.

"I love you," he sighed softly in her ear. "I love you more than anything." He kissed her again, a bit fiercer this time. She accepted his kisses gratefully, feeling the contentment of being in his arms sink back into her veins. His lips were soft against her chapped ones, but he didn't seem to mind. Kissing her was too addicting to focus on the little imperfections. His hands rubbed up and down her back, pulling a soft moan from deep inside her. She broke the kiss briefly and whispered as a reply, "I love you too."

The couple fell back onto the bed, lips caressing and tongues dancing. Aang perched himself up on his forearm as to not crush her fragile figure. Her fingers massaged his back and the ugly scar that had marred it for years.

She wrapped her legs around his torso as he threaded his fingers in her hair.

"Need you," he murmured in between the steamy kisses. She let out a tiny gasp as he broke the chain of kisses to suck the left side of her neck. Katara could feel her center throb with need, and began to move her hips in time with his, feeling the desire to finally connect with him in the way she had never been able to.

"Is. Now. The. Right. Time?" She could only manage to let out individual gasps as the pleasure of his coaxing washed over her.

"Yes," he breathed, pausing to wipe a leftover tear from her eye. He smiled adoringly at her before meeting her lips once again. "Now's the right time."

All of their clothing had ended up either torn or on the floor, including Katara's nightgown and bindings. When the time finally came for them to join, she couldn't deny that she was scared. They were both completely naked, eyes wide and hearts pounding. Sweat glistened on the exposed skin of the two lovers. Aang kissed her again, breaking the tension, before lowering himself down to enter her.

For Katara, pain instantly turned into pleasure. She and Aang were the only two people on earth, or at least that's what it felt like. They both moaned at the overwhelming sensations. Panting against him, Katara bucked her hips frantically so she could take in as much of him as possible. He showered her face and body with open-mouthed kisses and sensual touches, wanting nothing more than to please her. "A-Aang!" She called his name with her release; shooting stars blurred her vision.

He was gone the next morning. He had told her shortly after their night of love that he would need to leave. However, she was so happy that all she could do was smile lovingly and kiss him again. Sitting up in the bed, not bothering to cover her nude form, she searched the room somberly for any sign of him. Upon realizing that she had lost the man she loved again, Katara bowed her head and let a few more tears fall.

"He will come back," she whispered. "He has to."

Her hand instinctively lifted to brush the bare spot on her neck, but she was rather surprised when she touched the smooth fabric of a ribbon and not her own skin. Curious fingers reached behind her to untie the knotted fabric, bringing it into a clearer view.

For the first time in a long time, happy tears sprang to her eyes as she felt the cool stone of the water tribe insignia. The necklace was beautiful and finely crafted, looking as if it had been worked on for months. It was held together with sturdy, but beautiful blue ribbon. Katara smiled at the words engraved into the back of the stone.

_Love is brightest in the dark._

And as she looked at that beautiful engagement necklace, carved only from Aang's love for her, she slowly felt the burning ache melt away.


End file.
